Texas Photographic Society is honored to announce our 37th Annual Members Only Show, which will be juried by O. Rufus Lovett, a fine art and editorial photographer, and recently retired after 42 years as photography professor at Kilgore College.

MOS37 will be exhibited at the Center for Contemporary Arts (CCA) in Abilene, Texas. This call is open themed and welcomes submissions from artists of all levels internationally. Please also read the Jurors’ Statement below. You must be a current TPS member to enter and may join at the time of entry.


CALENDAR OF EVENTS


September 17, 2024 Call for entry opens
September 30, 2024 Deadline for entry (11:59 p.m. Mountain Time Zone)
October 18, 2024 Exhibiting artists announced and emails sent to all entrants
November 16, 2024 Work due at the Center for Contemporary Arts, in Abilene, Texas
November 21, 2024 Exhibition opens at the Center for Contemporary Arts
January 18, 2025 Exhibition closes

AWARDS

First Place = $500

Second Place = $300

Third Place = $200

Up to 5 Honorable Mentions may be awarded

ENTRY FEE

The entry fee for current members of Texas Photographic Society (TPS) is $30 for 5 images, plus $6 for each additional image. You may enter up to 12 images. (CaFÉ requires a minimum of five images; if you really need to, you may submit mulitples of the same image to reach the minimum.) You must be a current member of TPS to participate and may join or renew on the CaFÉ website at the time of entry. All entry and membership fees are non-refundable.

ELIGIBILITY

The 37th Annual Members Only Show is open to artists internationally, of all levels, who are at least 18 years old at time of entry. All photography-based work is encouraged including digital, silver, and alternative processes.

You MUST be a current member of TPS to enter this competition (read more about TPS member benefits). If you are not a current member, you may join or renew and enter this show at the same time. If you need to verify your membership status, please contact Ann at ann@texasphoto.org. Works exhibited previously in a TPS show are not eligible. Current members of the TPS Board of Directors are permitted to enter but are not eligible for awards.

IMAGE REQUIREMENTS

Please submit digital JPG files only, minimum of 1200 pixels on the longest side and 5 MB maximum. Please remove watermarks from images. For each image you will need to provide the image title and the process (medium) used to make the image/print (Archival Digital Print, Silver Gelatin Print, Platinum/Palladium Print, Wet Plate Collodian, etc.) To clarify, you will submit a digital file of your image for the contest application; if your work is selected for the show you will print your image, frame it, and ship it to the exhibition venue.

Need help resizing images? You can resize via a Mac or PC computer, or use a number of third-party applications, many of which offer free trials or solutions. Please go here for suggestions.

JURORS’ STATEMENT

I am honored and privileged to be the juror for the Texas Photographic Society's 37th Annual Members Only Show. It was in the late 80s that I joined the Texas Photographic Society. A few years later Julianne Newton asked me to join the Board of Directors and I participated for over 10 years. I love this organization and the quality work its members consistently create. What a great venue for your photographs to become open for discussion and inspire passion for photographic art.

Black and white silver gelatin and color film were the materials I used when beginning my photography profession. Now I’m utilizing digital imaging online and in print. But I am pleased about the many who continue to use film by way of a wet lab and the recent resurgence of film media by a new generation. Film is an extraordinary and beautiful medium that continues to motivate creativity. I also applaud the impact and advances digital imaging has had and I have always found alternative processes fascinating. “Writing with light” is so wondrous, regardless of the preferred medium. The artistry of the craft must be outstanding for the image to be cherished, yet of course technique must honor the context of personal expression and subject.

My career’s emphasis has been linked to the human condition and portraiture. However, I embrace and work within various other genres including still life, landscape, nature, architecture and all the while welcoming literal and abstract interpretations. Like many jurors, I value submissions that present a cohesive body of work and reflect essential significance. Curiosity, mystery, humor, light, beauty, surprise, drama, point of view and perhaps a sense of place are clues that may play a role in the appreciation of a photograph. It is most gratifying when a unique personal interpretation is revealed within a body of work.

After all, it’s like Ansel Adams noted, “The most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it.” I look forward to the enlightenment I’ll surely experience when reviewing your work.

--- O. Rufus Lovett

ABOUT THE JUROR

O. Rufus Lovett is a fine art and editorial photographer. He taught photography at Kilgore College for 42 years and was awarded Piper Professor in 2005 from the Minnie Stevens Piper Foundation in San Antonio. He was also awarded Advisor of The Year in 2016 by the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association.

In addition to teaching, Lovett’s editorial work has appeared in various publications and media: Texas Monthly, Texas Highways, People, Money, Gourmet, Saveur, Houstonia, KLTV an ABC Affiliate, NBC News with Tom Brokaw, Marie Clair, LensWork, Southern Living, Stern, LIFE, Reader’s Digest and NPR, All Things Considered.

During a 10-year span Lovett directed The Image Gallery, the first photography gallery in Longview, Texas. He curated over 50 exhibitions of regional and nationally known photographers.

The University of Texas Press at Austin published three of Lovett’s photographic books: Weeping Mary in 2006, Kilgore Rangerettes in 2008, Barbecue Crossroads with writer Robb Walsh in 2013. His most recent book involvement was @longviewtx150 with writer Gary Borders. It was self-published in 2020 by Borders and Lovett. The book encompasses portraits of 150 residents from various walks of life celebrating Longview’s Sesquicentennial.

Lovett’s fine art has been exhibited in numerous venues throughout Texas and the US. Included are: Galveston Arts Center; The Afterimage Photograph Gallery, Dallas; Stephen L. Clark Gallery, Austin; Museum of Fine Art, Houston; Wittliff Collections, San Marcos; Grace Museum, Abilene; Blue Sky Gallery, Portland, OR; Birmingham Museum of Fine Art, Alabama; Baylor University, Waco; Longview Museum of Fine Arts; Tyler Museum of Art; Open Shutter Gallery, Durango, CO; Humanities Research Center at The University of Texas at Austin; and the International Center of Photography, Only Skin Deep exhibition, New York.

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The work of TPS is made possible through suport from the Texas Commission on the Arts, a partnership with Fujifilm, and the generous support of our members.
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SALES

TPS and our partner venues encourage the sale of exhibited work and will collect a commission from all prints sold during the exhibition. (The average commision is 30%; final sales/commission details for each venue will be included in the exhibition contract for accepted artists.) Please indicate the sales price of your framed print. If your photograph is Not-For-Sale, simply note NFS. If your work is accepted and you do not indicate a sales price, the artwork will be listed as NFS.

IF YOUR WORK IS ACCEPTED

PLEASE NOTE: Update for this exhibition, the framed (finished piece) must not exceed the size of 30" in the longest dimension.

1. Artwork must be ready-to-hang using wire stretched between D-rings on the back. The finished piece must not exceed 30" in the longest dimension (including the frame). Sawtooth hangers are NOT permitted. Please use white mats and white or black frames that are gallery quality and complement your work (color mats are NOT acceptable). Plexiglass must be used with the frame, NO GLASS ALLOWED. Photographs printed on metal are allowed, but must be framed, with the photograph safely recessed from the front of the frame, and packed appropriately. Clearly label the back of your work with your full name, address, telephone number, email address, image title, medium, dimensions and sales price or NFS. TPS reserves the right to exclude works from the exhibition that are not gallery-ready and professional in presentation.

2. Clearly label the back of your work with your full name, Image title, email address, medium, and sales price or NFS.

3. A prepaid return UPS or FedEX shipping label MUST be provided with your work for prints to be returned to you when the exhibition concludes. Work WITHOUT return shipping will NOT be included in the exhibition and will NOT be returned. Please keep a copy of the prepaid return shipping label and your receipt.

4. Please ship photographs in a sturdy, flat box (do not use moving boxes) with your last name clearly written on the box (not just on the shipper's label). Packing “peanuts" are NOT permitted. Artwork will be return-shipped in the container in which they were received. If shipping and packing materials are insufficient for safe return, the artist may be charged an extra fee for packing materials provided by TPS or the venue. If additional exhibition venues are added, artists will be notified with location, dates, and other pertinent details, and work will be return-shipped from the final venue.

5. Framed prints with a prepaid return shipping label must arrive at Center for Contemporary Arts in Abilene between November 4 and 16, 2024.

6. TPS and Center for Contemporary Arts will exercise all due care in handling your artwork. However, TPS is not liable for loss, theft, damage or replacement of artwork, nor is TPS liable for damage during shipping. Center for Contemporary Arts does not insure artists' work. Please consider insuring your work.

Our friends at Frame Destination in Dallas, Texas, have prepared a special archival gallery frame kit for TPS artists that meets standard matting, framing and presentation requirements. The frame kit can be customized to meet various print sizes. TPS Members receive an additional 10% discount (contact Frame Destination customer service to join the TPS club customer group). This affordably priced package can be purchased online here.

Application Requirements

Please submit digital JPG files only, minimum of 1200 pixels on the longest side and 5 MB maximum. Please remove watermarks from images. For each image you will need to provide the image title and the process (medium) used to make the image/print (Archival Digital Print, Silver Gelatin Print, Platinum/Palladium Print, Wet Plate Collodian, etc.) To clarify, you will submit a digital file of your image for the contest application; if your work is selected for the show you will print your image, frame it, and ship it to the exhibition venue.

Need help resizing images? You can resize via a Mac or PC computer, or use a number of third-party applications, many of which offer free trials or solutions. Please go here for suggestions.

Eligibility Criteria

The 36th Annual Members Only Show is open to artists internationally, of all levels, who are at least 18 years old at time of entry. All photography-based work is encouraged including digital, silver, and alternative processes.

You MUST be a current member of TPS to enter this competition (read more about TPS member benefits). If you are not a current member, you may join or renew and enter this show at the same time. If you need to verify your membership status, please contanct Ann at ann@texasphoto.org. Works exhibited previously in a TPS show are not eligible. Current members of the TPS Board of Directors are permitted to enter but are not eligible for awards.